Vanderburgh, Spencer county libraries have star power

Two Tri-State library systems have earned national recognition based on their per-capita public library usage.

The Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library and Spencer County Public Library were among 256 U.S. libraries to earn star ratings in the Library Journal Index of Public Library Service 2009. The ratings system, brand-new this year, is based on 2006 data reported by a total of 7,115 libraries.

Ratings were based on four criteria: circulation per capita, visits per capita, program attendance per capita and Internet use per capita. Libraries earned scores in each of these four areas, and the libraries with the highest overall scores earned three-, four- or five-star ratings. Libraries were compared with their peers, based on total annual operating expenditures.

The Vanderburgh County library, whose 2006 expenditures were in the $5 million to $9.9 million range, earned three stars. The Spencer County Public Library, in the $400,000 to $999,000 range, earned five stars.

These ratings mean that the Spencer County library's overall score put it in the top 10 among 1,247 peer libraries. The Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library's score put it in the top 30 among its 159 peers.

Evelyn Walker, associate director of public services at Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library, said the library is proud of its rating, which shows that the organization is a good steward of taxpayer money.

"Yes, we can improve we can always improve but I think we're spending our money wisely."

Spencer County Public Library Director Beverly Symon agreed.

Especially in the current economy, Symon said, ratings like this one help show that libraries are important.

"Not everybody realizes the value of the library."

Another way ratings are useful, Walker said, is that they help highlight areas of strength and weakness.

"We're just going to evaluate how well we did, what we can improve and what we can do to be at least a four-star (library)."

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For a full listing of star-rated libraries, visit www.libraryjournal.com/ljindex2009. The list includes the following libraries in Indiana and Illinois (Kentucky had no star-rated libraries):

Indiana

Spencer County Public Library; Bell Memorial Public Library (Mentone); Waterloo-Grant Township Public Library; Orleans Town and Township Public Library; Butler Public Library; Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library; St. Joseph County Public Library (South Bend); Allen County Public Library (Fort Wayne); Walton and Tipton Township Public Library; Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library; Monroe County Public Library (Bloomington).